ALTX Africa targets small investors with new Uganda exchange

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KAMPALA, July 13 (Reuters) - ALTX Africa launched a new financial exchange in Uganda on Wednesday that will allow investors to trade in small lots, boosting access to financial markets, its chief executive said.

Joseph Kitamirike told Reuters there were just 30,000 securities trading accounts in the East African nation of 35 million people, estimating potential for five million more accounts.

“The first security we are offering, the lot size is 10,000 shillings, which is like $3, and the minimum amount investable is $3, to bring in a cadre of investors who never imagined they could trade securities,” he said by phone from Kampala.

ALTX Africa is owned by a holding company registered in Mauritius and Kitamirike is one of its shareholders. Other shareholders include London-based GMEX Technologies, which helped develop the ALTX East Africa platform.

Uganda already has a full-fledged financial market, the Uganda Securities Exchange (USE), which has several listed firms. Kitamirike said the new exchange is targeting investors who don’t trade on the larger exchange.

The ALTX East Africa Exchange will initially offer trading in depository receipt securities issued on Uganda’s secondary Treasury market before introducing other products such as exchange traded funds, he said.